Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Los Angeles Lakers Betting Preview
Where: Staples Center — Los Angeles, CA
When: Tuesday, November 22, 2016, 10:30 PM ET
Line: Oklahoma City Thunder (-2.5) vs. Los Angeles Lakers (+2.5); total: 221.0 – view all NBA lines
TV Broadcast: NBATV
Writer’s Pick: Oklahoma City Thunder
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Betting on the Oklahoma City Thunder (-2.5)
OKC fell off the top 10 in ESPN’s weekly power rankings; a result of the team’s recent setbacks.
In the last seven games, the Thunder have dropped five, but three of which have been decided by just four or fewer points. That includes Sunday night’s overtime loss to the visiting Pacers, who mustered in their first road win, 115-111, despite missing the services of Paul George.
Russell Westbrook did everything possible to win the game for his team, punching in his league-leading fifth triple-double of the season: 31 points, 11 rebounds and 15 assists. He also drained the game-tying three-pointer to send the game into an extra period.
As much as how fun it is to watch Westbrook spearhead the Thunder’s one-man show, the team and its fan base would rather have wins. Thus, another OKC starter, or anyone from the current roster, has to not just pump up the point production, but also turn into a consistent threat that opponents would constantly be cautious of.
Victor Oladipo (16.9 PPG), Enes Kanter (12.2 PPG) and Steven Adams (9.9 PPG) are the top candidates for this role, and they can start turning up the heat in tonight’s road game against the Lakers, whose defense is giving up nearly 110 points per game and a team that they’ve already beaten earlier this season.
Betting on the Los Angeles Lakers (+2.5)
The Lake Show is slowly falling back to reality. LA’s now lost its last two games (0-2 ATS), with the latest of which against the visiting Bulls on Sunday night, 118-110.
The Lakers defense couldn’t hold off Jimmy Butler from going on a scoring spree, as the two-time All-Star from Texas finished with a season-high 40 points along with seven rebounds and six dimes. The Bulls also did what they do best, overpowering the purple and gold in the battle of the boards, 65-43.
Speaking of which, the Lakers are bound to lose their third-straight tonight if they can’t control the glass against the Thunder, another very good rebounding team. And besides that, there’s a bigger problem to worry about in the form of Russell Westbrook, who torched them with 33 points, 11 rebounds and 16 assists in their first meeting this season.
LA has the advantage offensively, though. They’re second in the league in scoring, third in field goal percentage and ninth in threes made per game. Leading the charge has been their second unit, which is averaging an NBA-best 51.6 points a game.
Lou Williams and Jordan Clarkson have provided most of the firepower off the bench, contributing 16.9 and 14.6 points, respectively. Both will need to sustain this, especially with D’Angelo Russell labeled as questionable for this game due to a sore knee.
Writer’s Prediction
OKC (-2.5) wins it, 116-105.
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